Motoring News

2015 Peugeot 308 GT 1.6 THP 205 5dr review
308 GT 1.6-litre petrol is priced from £24,095
Peugeot's given the 308 the engine from the 208 GTi 30th and some chassis upgrades; we find out if the changes bring a bit of old-school Peugeot hot-hatch magic to this likeable family hatch.
The Peugeot 308 is arguably a return to form for the French manufacturer in the style stakes. Gracefully reserved but handsome nonetheless, it’s a big improvement over some of the company’s less well-received recent creations.Great dynamics were also once a Peugeot trademark, but over the last decade or so that star has waned. It's hoped that the new 308 GT can improve this aspect, too. Its sporting credentials are announced by the mild body kit, with side skirts and bigger air ducts, twin tailpipes and LED headlights. Meanwhile its credibility relies on stiffer springs and dampers, plus the 1.6-litre turbocharged motor from the 208 GTi 30th Anniversary. So, has it worked?

A wedge of 40-year-old history: celebrating the Austin Princess
The Austin Princess with designer Harris Mann
On March 26, 1975, the 18-22 Series - or Princess as it became known - was born. Today, its birthday was celebrated by owners and the car's designer
Four decades ago today, the nation was slightly startled by the arrival of a dramatic-looking new slice of family car. A wedge-shaped slice, which had come from the by now rather pedestrian Austin-Morris division of British Leyland.The new 18-22 Series was launched on March 26, 1975, and earlier I attended a modest ceremony to mark the fact at the place of its birth, at what is now BMW’s Mini factory on the edge of Oxford.Strictly speaking, we were told - by a Mini factory guide who worked there at the time - that the 18-22 was manufactured on the other side of a bypass on land now occupied by a gym, an Audi dealer and a science park, but the 18-22’s body was made on the part of the site from where Minis emerge today.In case the 18-22 Series doesn’t sound familiar to you, you may remember this car as the Princess, or following a demotion and a sex-change, the Ambassador. The Princess is what it became after nine months, when BL decided to rationalise the original Austin, Morris and Wolseley versions under this one nameplate.The Princess tends to be lumped with the Morris Marina and Austin Allegro as an example of one of the worst cars produced by Britain’s troubled motor industry in the 1970s, but the 'wedge' differed from this infamous pair in that it was actually rather good.During 1977, this very magazine rated the six-cylinder 2200 HLS as the best car it

Toyota to 'reinvent' the car factory
Toyota reveals plans to revolutionise the car factory of the future, which will be able to grow or shrink its production line as required
Toyota says its has completely re-thought the way its future car factories will operate.Its plans for the new-generation factories - nicknamed ‘simple and slim’ - are well advanced. Toyota claims they will be 25% smaller than existing plants, require 40% less investment and emit up to 55% less CO2.Toyota also plans to re-engineer the production lines so they can be shortened or lengthened in less than 80 minutes.It’s claimed that a standard line can be shrunk from a 100,000 car-per-year capacity to just 50,000 cars, or vice versa. This would allow capacity to be easily reduced or increased depending on demand.The simplification of the line-side equipment is key to this, along with a new type of super-slim modular conveyor belt, which is laid on the factory floor, rather than being dug into a pit.In order to allow this new conveyor belt to be made longer or shorter, the line-side equipment – such as the arm, which holds the car’s doors as they are swung into place - is mounted on wheels.Because this equipment is not physically attached to the ground or the structure of the factory, it allows the production line to become truly modular. This means adding extra features to an existing vehicle is now much easier, because a new workstation can be added to extend the production line.Toyota will also remove the overhead conveyor lines from its new-generation factories. This, it says, has a number of useful knock-on effects. The new factory buildings will be much more simply constructed becau

Suzuki Celerio
The Celerio is an all-new city car from Suzuki
Does Suzuki's new city runabout have what it takes to succeed?
For a small car made by a bit-part player in the global car market, the Suzuki Celerio has already had a disproportionately large amount of coverage in Autocar – and that’s not counting the eight pages you’re about to read.The Celerio might have justified much of that coverage all on its own and in the usual ways, by virtue of being new, interesting, practical and appealingly well priced. We’ve come to expect nothing less from Suzuki – and we’ll cover those many facets in detail over the next couple of thousand words.Suffice to say for now that this isn’t just another city car but a sign of new-found ambition and imagination from Japan’s maverick supermini and 4x4 specialist.And yet, as regular readers will know, it has also had a UK market launch marked by controversy. The Celerio provided a welcome reminder of the need for independent and thorough testing when, six weeks ago during our own performance benchmarking session, it failed a routine emergency braking test.Two test cars suffered the same brake linkage failure on the same day, leading to a collapsed pedal, when required to execute a maximum-pressure, ABS-assisted stop from 70mph.It’s a clear example of a safety-critical mechanical defect being flushed out by what we still believe to be the most thorough assessment of a new car carried out by any car magazine anywhere in the world – and, mercifully, before it was allowed to endanger lives on UK roads. Which, in a rarely necessary but important sense, is what we’re here for.Acting with laudable speed, Suzuki subsequently investigated the problem, recommissioned the part at

2016 Renault Megane - first spy pictures
The third-generation Renault Mégane is due to go on sale early in 2016
Renault's upcoming Mégane hatchback will receive a 'more sporting' design in a bid to claw back sales from Ford and Volkswagen, and will go on sale early next year
The next-generation Renault Megane has been spotted testing for the first time, ahead of a planned on-sale date early next year.The new model is likely to receive its global debut at the Frankfurt motor show in September, and will become a crucial model for Renault as it fights to match the current generation of family hatchbacks from Ford, Vauxhall and the Volkswagen Group.As these first spy pictures reveal, the third-generation family hatchback will take on a sportier stance and is expected to mix design themes established by the smaller Clio and larger Captur.The key details from the Clio and Captur will be the curved door shape with its 'waisted-in" body side, together with the new corporate face which features a prominent Renault logo on a dark plastic, full-width narrow grille. A new roof-mounted lip spoiler can also be seen at the rear."We won’t be going back to the shape of the Mégane II," UK product manager Yann Le Graet told Autocar last year. "The low roof gives us something different from the Go

2015 Ford Fiesta ST3 CP3 Performance Pack review
Collins Performance has given the Fiesta ST 270bhp and 265lb ft, but has our favourite fast Ford been ruined in the process?
It's a chance for fans of the superb Ford Fiesta ST either to wince and shake their heads or sit up straight and take notice, depending on how they like their hot hatches.We did the latter when Mountune announced it was hiking the ST's power from 180bhp to 212bhp back in 2013, and the results were good. For 2015, Collins Performance has somewhat raised the bar. You see, its ST, in this state, produces 270bhp and 265lb ft.This actually represents the third and final tier of CP's ST upgrade packages. A new Mongoose exhaust, Airtec intercooler, ITG induction system, CPE turbocharger and revised ECU mapping are your rewards for choosing to laugh in the face of tiers one and two.The cost for going this big? A full £2965, including fitting and a discount if you let CP keep your old turbo. Our car was also fitted with the firm's Dynamic Chassis upgrade, which swaps the ST's standard front wishbone and rear beam bushes for stiffer ones, and costs a further £440. This sort of power from a 1.6 petrol is nothing new - see Peugeot's RCZ R - but that's a car that relies heavily on its limited-slip differential. So how does a similarly potent but slippy diff-less Fiesta ST get on?

2015 Peugeot 508 RXH 2.0 BlueHDi
Lavishly-equipped, rugged-looking Peugeot 508 estate is a pleasant drive, but there are many more recommendable alternatives
It's a bit misleading - that's what it is. Where previously the chunky bodykit and raised ride height of the Peugeot 508 RXH was unique to the four-wheel drive, electric-diesel 'Hybrid4' powertrain, this is in fact a straightforward front-wheel drive 508 estate, wearing the hybrid's mud-faring regalia.Still, with 178bhp from the 2.0-litre diesel, and a six-speed automatic as standard - a powertrain that's not available in the standard Peugeot 508 SW estate - this diesel RXH offers good mid-range performance and a massive saving of £4350 over the hybrid.On top of that, with emissions at a very respectable 119g/km, and equipment including the full roster of luxuries such as head-up display, sat-nav, leather and LED headlights, this could actually make a lot more sense than the 'proper' hybrid RXH.

2015 Seat Leon X-Perience 2.0 TDI 184 UK review
The Seat Leon X-Perience is the closest thing to an SUV that you can buy with a Seat badge for now, blending estate practicality with off-road ability
The Seat Leon X-Perience offers a lot of practicality in one package, including four-wheel drive, improved ground clearance and all the usefulness of the standard Leon ST estate.This range-topping version adds a few more things that might be chosen out of want rather than need, though, such as the DSG dual-clutch automatic gearbox and a 181bhp version of the 2.0-litre diesel engine.It's also worth noting that this higher-powered engine and dual-clutch transmission are only available as a pair - you can't have one without the other in your X-Perience

2016 Ford Focus RS - new pictures and details
The new Focus RS is powered by a 2.3-litre EcoBoost engine
Third-generation all-wheel-drive Ford Focus RS will powered by a 2.3-litre EcoBoost engine producing 316bhp, and will come with launch control and a 'drift' button
The new Ford Focus RS is headed to the New York motor show with a new signature colour. The car's paintwork is described as 'Nitrous Blue'. It will be the first RS model to be sold in the US.The third-generation hot hatchback, which will be powered by a turbocharged 2.3-litre engine producing “more than 316bhp”, received its first public at the Geneva motor show earlier this month, where officials confirmed it will also come with a new 'drift button'. The Focus RS will channel its power through a variable all-wheel drive system as part of a raft of technical innovations designed to make it the highest-performing RS model yet built.The so-called All-Wheel-Drive with Dynamic Torque Vectoring system is by far the most significant mechanical upgrade for the RS over other Focuses, including the ST.It is also a surprise because the early indications where that Ford had decided to stick with a two-wheel drive system for the car after trying both set-ups during development work led by Europe’s Ford Performance division. Ford claims the system provides “class-leading corner speed, limit handling and a unique drift capability”. See the new RS in action in Ford's

Toyota goes back to basics to make 'ever-better cars'
Toyota shows off new TNGA architecture
Toyota has revealed a new platform that will underpin its future cars
Toyota has unveiled a new global vehicle architecture that the company says will "greatly improve vehicle performance and product appeal", as well as cutting development costs and massively reducing the complexity of its current global model range.Known as the Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA), the system is a kit of "lighter, more compact" components that will be used for a new generation of vehicles covering front and rear-wheel drive and a new, "much higher efficiency" powertrain family.The Japanese car maker also promises much-improved handling, thanks to a lower-mounted powertrain. This, according to Toyota, endows TNGA cars with the lowest centre of gravity of any mainstream rival.As many as 50% of all Toyota’s output by 2020 will use the TNGA architecture. This will offer a huge cost saving and reduction in complexity for Toyota, which says it currently has around "100 platforms and sub-platforms".Toyota says the TNGA structures will be 30-65% stiffer than today’s models. That should feed into better ride and handling as well as improved crash safety.The new TNGA engines are "much more" thermally efficient, offering around 15% more power and - in conjunction with more efficient automatic and CVT transmissions – offer as much as 25% better fuel economy.The "fifth generation" hybrid powertrain that is bundled with TNGA is claimed to be 15% more economical than today’s Toyota hybrid models.This new powertain family will als

2016 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid to be unveiled at New York motor show
The Toyota RAV4 Hybrid is expected to be launched in 2016
Teaser image reveals the rear of Toyota's new hybrid SUV
Toyota has released an image of the facelifted RAV4, showing the hybrid version of the revised SUV ahead of its public debut at the New York motor show.
Little information on the car has been released, but the hybrid is expected to join theRAV4 line-up in 2016 after its appearance in New York.
The teaser picture only shows the rear of the car, and it will be the first time that a hybrid is offered in the RAV4 range.
The RAV4 range was boosted earlier this year with the Business Edition model, which went on sale in January, priced from £23,995.
Toyota's SUV counts the Mazda CX-5, Nissan Qashqai and Ford Kuga among its rivals, but it would be the first of them to offer a hybrid model in their range.
Read more New York motor show news
Get the latest car news, reviews and galleries from Autocar direct to your inbox every week. Enter your email address below:

2015 Kia Optima to be revealed in New York
The Optima shares its platform with the Hyundai i40
Fourth-generation Optima will go on sale towards the end of this year, featuring Sportspace-inspired looks and a more luxurious cabin
The new Kia Optima will make its global debut at the New York motor show next month, and has been previewed with this official image, which shows the car in the metal for the first time.Set to take on the likes of the new Ford Mondeo and Volkswagen Passat when it goes on sale in Europe towards the end of this year, the fourth-generation Optima is based on the same platform as the Hyundai i40.Kia describes the new car as being "passionately designed and obsessively crafted," and says the Optima range "has become a catalyst for the brand’s tremendous growth around the globe."Showing clear design inspiration from recent Kia models, the fourth-generation Optima features a thinner, elongated interpretation of the firm's 'Tiger Nose' grille, as well as larger lower air vents. The new model gets a more aggressive rear bumper design than today's Optima, too.As well revising the exterior styling, Kia is understood to have lifted the overall fit and finish of the Optima's cabin, with spy pictures revealing a new centre console design. The Korean firm says "the all-new Optima features a more spacious interior, premium features from the class above and a number of technologies not previously offered."

Connected cars to deliver huge revenue and new jobs in the UK
Research presented to the industry in London today outlines how taking a lead in next generation automotive technology will generate money and jobs in the UK
Development of autonomous and connected car technologies will raise billons for the UK economy, according to research published today.Research conducted by KPMG on behalf of the SMMT, says the development of connected and autonomous vehicles will help generate 320,000 jobs in the UK, generate £51 billion pounds in revenue and reduce serious road traffic accidents by more than 25,000 a year by 2030.The findings are being presented to the industry at SMMTConnected, the first ever industry-wide event in Britain seeking to demonstrate how the UK automotive sector is already developing the cars of the future. Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive, said, “Connected and autonomous cars will transform our roads and the way our society functions for generations to come, dramatically reducing accidents and helping to deliver more than £50 billion to our economy. The KPMG report clearly shows the UK automotive industry is leading the way in developing the cars of the future and that it will act as a catalyst for wider economic benefits that will create more than 300,000 jobs by 2030. The UK must grasp the opportunities ahead and ensure it is continually at the forefront of pushing through these next breakthrough technologies.”The UK has taken a lead in the pushing the autonomous driving agenda, helped by government investment and a legislative advantage over European rivals.Chancellor Ge

Throwback Thursday - Caterpillar tracks are the future, 25 March 1922
Tank-style caterpillar tracks were regarded as the future, once
Before the road network matured, there seemed to be real potential in go-anywhere vehicles equipped with self-laying tracks
These days, mainstream car makers don’t have a habit of developing vehicles with tank-style caterpillar tracks on their rear axles.In the early 1920s, however, there was a good argument for tracked vehicles, especially in less hospitable regions of the globe.“A vast future lies before vehicles which are equipped with self-laying tracks,” proclaimed Autocar in a 1922 article.“If we study the history of any new country, we usually find that the limiting factor in its evolution is the question of transport, and hitherto this has depended upon the development of railways or hard-made roads. There is an urgent need for vehicles which can operate freely over unmetalled paths or virgin land.“The capability which these creeper track vehicles in general possess of covering soft ground is due to the fact that the load is distributed over the whole area of contact of the track with the ground, whereas with a wheeled vehicle the area of contact of the wheels with the ground is extremely small.”There were some drawbacks to creeper tracks, Autocar noted: “One difficulty has been the absence of an efficient system of compensated springing to enable a perfect distribution of weight to be obtained in crossing rough or uneven ground."It is easy when passing over an undulation for half the weight of the machine to be borne on a very small area, the result being that the ground is flattened, or th

Jaguar Land Rover confirms £600m investment in the West Midlands
Castle Bromwich assembly plant gets £400m upgrade as part of JLR's investment program
Jaguar Land Rover has reaffirmed its commitment to car development and production in the West Midlands with investment totalling £600 million announced today.The announcement completes a remarkable transformation for the company's West Midlands facilities, which were earmarked for consolidation as recently as 2010. The introduction of successful new models, as well as significant investment, have seen sales of Jaguar cars built at its Castle Bromwich plant almost double in five years.Company CEO Dr Ralf Speth said: “Jaguar Land Rover continues to demonstrate its unwavering support to the British automotive industry through sustained investments in advanced research, technology and innovation.“This investment, made here in the heartland of our UK business operations, signals the confidence we have in this region to support the creation, engineering and manufacturing of ultra-low-emission, premium British products, today and in the future.”How the £600m has been spentThe money is split between three seperate facilities in the West Midlands.The largest single investment has been made at the company’s Castle Bromwich plant, where more than £400m has been spent upgrading ahead of the new Jaguar XF going into build.Of that amount, £320m is committed to an all-new 74,000sq ft body shop, which the company says cements the plant as a global centre of excellence for lightweight vehicle manufacturing. The

2016 BMW 1 Series saloon - first spy shots
The 1 Series saloon will be front-wheel drive but may come with an xDrive AWD option
BMW is set to take on the Audi A3 saloon next year with a new compact front-wheel-drive four-door
The BMW 1 Series saloon has been spotted testing for the first time ahead of a 2016 launch.The saloon is based on the same platform as the next generation of the 1 Series hatchback and both cars are set to be front-wheel drive. The current 1 Series hatchback is the last that will be offered with rear-wheel drive.The new saloon will join the 2 Series Active Tourer and Gran Tourer in being front-wheel drive. However, both of these models are also offered with four-wheel drive, so there is a possibility that the 1 Series will come with an xDrive option as well.The pictures show a four-door model similar in shape to the current 3 Series, albeit smaller. The current 3 Series is 4624mm long and the 1 Series hatchback 4324mm.This new model was spotted testing at the Nürburgring and is expected to be a rival to the likes of the Audi A3 saloon and the Mercedes-Benz CLA. This is an area in which BMW does not currently compete.The 1 Series saloon is set to go on sale before the new version of the hatchback, because the three-door and five-door 1 Series were facelifted only this year.<